By finishing second in the mass start of Otepää on Saturday March 12, Quentin Fillon Maillet became the fourth Frenchman to win the general classification of the World Cup. After three seasons at the end of which he finished in third place in this ranking, the Jura player lifts the big crystal globe for the first time. Back in figures on an extraordinary season during which he left very little hope to his competitors.
245 points ahead of his runner-up, Émilien Jacquelin
While he has three individual events to go, Quentin Fillon Maillet can no longer be caught up in the general classification of the World Cup. After his 2nd position in the mass start, he now has 870 points, or 245 ahead of his runner-up, Émilien Jacquelin. With the three remaining races at Holmenkollen (Norway, from March 17 to 20), the Jurassien still has the opportunity to do better than Martin Fourcade who, in 2013, beat Emil Svendsen by 421 points.
88% shooting success on the season
Throughout the season, and even during the Olympic Games, Quentin Fillon Maillet has established himself as one of the best shooters on the circuit. His strength ? Regularity on shooting lying down as on shooting standing up. With 87% success on the lying down, and 89% standing, he displays almost similar statistics, regardless of the position, while his pursuers generally have a position of preference. This season, for example, Émilien Jacquelin succeeds 86% of his shots lying down, but only 76% of his shots standing.
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5 lawsuits won out of 6 disputed
So far, the Jura has eight victories this season in the World Cup: three in sprint and five in pursuit. After a disappointment in the first pursuit of the season in Östersund, and a final sixteenth place, Quentin Fillon Maillet made short work of the following pursuits. He finally won five of the six events in this discipline contested this season, not counting the Olympic Games, again thanks to formidable shooting accuracy and very good speed on skis.
Eight individual victories, in the footsteps of Martin Fourcade
Even if the two biathletes do not necessarily like the comparison, it is clear that Quentin Fillon Maillet walks in the footsteps of Martin Fourcade. When the seven-time winner of the overall World Cup won his first big crystal globe in 2012, he too had won eight events during the season.
Quentin Fillon Maillet, who already has eight, will have the opportunity to stand on the podium again during the last weekend of the season, at Holmenkollen. On the other hand, even by winning the last three races, Quentin Fillon Maillet will not equal the 1100 points scored by Martin Fourcade in 2011-2012. We will find an excuse for him: the Pyrenean had played 26 events to reach this score, while the current season only has 22 World Cup events.